If you’ve ever been to the Natural History Museum before you’ll know that it’s filled with some of coolest and weirdest collections of natural history artefacts and exhibits this side of the Galápagos Islands. In a new show coming to Sky 3D, Sir David Attenborough will be exploring the massive confines of the museum to pick out, discuss and re-imagine some of his favourite aspects in stunning HD and 3D detail.
Set to air on Sky 3D later this year (December 2013), David Attenborough’s Natural History Museum Adventure may only be a working title at the moment, but it conjures up visions of a wildlife documentary equivalent to Night At The Museum. With more than 70 million items to choose from under the massive roof on Exhibition Road, South Kensington, the legendary globe trotter will have his work cut out for him selecting the most interesting to bring to life a little closer to home.
David Attenborough is probably better known for his stunning nature documentaries for BBC, including his Life and Frozen Planets series. With more of a focus on live creatures to take the centre stage previously, it’ll be interesting to see how he manages to weave his own brand of TV magic on the Natural History Museum’s more sedentary articles.
With David approaching 88th birthday, the show will probably be a welcome break from the jungles, oceans, savanna and arctic tundra of the world. However, he’s also been commission for a more adventurous two part mini-series called Conquest of the Skies, which is set to air on Sky 3D in early 2014. More details are yet to come, but from the look of the title we assume it will focus on the evolution of flight over the years. The two shows build on his previous work with Sky 3D that includes Micro Monsters 3D, which is airing on Sky 1 HD at the moment.
Both David Attenborough’s Natural History Museum Adventures and Conquest of the Skies will be written and presented by the naturalist broadcaster himself featuring 3D production and stunning CGI animation. Expect everything from dinosaurs and dodos to butterflies and beetles to come together in both natural history and 3D animation form.
The Natural History Museum exposé will be a 90 minute, behind the scenes peek at the objects and inner workings that make the museum so special. In a similar way to how BBC Radio 4’s A History of the World in 100 Objects brought a fresh perspective to the collections of the British Museum, the new production will shine a light on London’s diplodocus, t-rex, blue whale and Wildlife Photographer of the Year inhabited museum.
In the words of Sir David Attenborough himself, ‘The Natural History Museum has always been a special place for me. I’m excited to make a film using new 3D technology which will take the viewer on a journey through one of my favourite museums and look at it – and its inhabitants – in ways never seen before.’
Dr Michael Dixon, Director of the Natural History Museum, added, ‘Sharing the wonders of our world-class collections and our scientific expertise is at the heart of what we do at the Natural History Museum. This collaboration gives a fresh take on some of the fascinating inhabitants of the collections, which I hope will inspire and surprise viewers.’
